Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers felt nothing but gratitude after the Steelers' wild 26-24 win over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night. The win clinched the AFC North for the Steelers, marking the first time that Rodgers will appear in the playoffs since 2021 when he was with the Green Bay Packers
The NFL Films mics captured Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin telling Rodgers after the win, "Appreciate you bro. Love you, man."
Rodgers responded, "Thank you for bringing me here."
"You kidding me? Thank you for coming," Tomlin replied.
Rodgers revealed during his introductory press conference with the Steelers in June that Tomlin was the driving force to why he signed with the club.
"I think it starts with Mike Tomlin," Rodgers said. "I've been a fan of his for a long time. There's a few iconic franchises in the NFL. I played for one of them for 18 years. This is another one of those. There's something special about — obviously this area, so many great quarterbacks are from Pittsburgh."
During the free agent process, Rodgers realized that his options were either playing for the Steelers or retirement. He did not think it would be worth it to play, unless it was for Tomlin.
"I appreciate the conversations with other organizations, for sure. But, again, I've said it. When it came between me and Mike. I made it to where, as I was going through with my personal stuff, there was no other option. It was here or not play," Rodgers stated.
"I felt like being here with Coach T and the guys they got here and the opportunity here was the best for me, and I'm excited to be here."
Rodgers said leading up to this past Sunday's Ravens game that his experience with the Steelers has been more than fulfilling
"I feel like there would be a little hole in my life missing without having this chapter," Rodgers said.
Is there more to be written in the 21-year veteran's book after this go-round?
"I'm thinking about this week, but obviously, I'm 42 years old, and I'm on a one-year deal, so I know what the situation is," Rodgers said . "When the season ends, I'll be a free agent. … There'll be options, I would think, maybe one or two, if I decide I still wanna play.
"This experience has been even better than I was hoping."
Rodgers was emotional in his postgame interview with Melissa Starks of NBC Sports. Retirement is the furthest thing on his mind right now.
"It's pretty emotional, honestly," Rodgers said, with his voice cracking a bit as he spoke. "It's been a great year, so I'm thankful for these guys and excited to be going to the playoffs for the first time in a long while."
Rodgers and the Steelers will host the Houston Texans next Monday night in the AFC Wild Card Round.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now : Aaron Rodgers, Mike Tomlin Share Emotional Moment after Ravens Win
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